Linux may be losing this average Jill

[nishtya]

wow, really got something going here

will try to get around to everybody:

gowater: I am far from a linux veteran. Running it for months makes me a dangerous newbie But been in IT for more years than I want to think about. All my linuxes are harddrive installs and debian style. Now, as for live CDs I generally have never run one for more than a weekend before going for the install. I settled on kanotix months ago after an lmsensors kernel-compiling debacle with knoppix-search for it here if you can't sleep some night LOL. But I am quite serious when I say how pleasantly surprised I was with windows (98 for goodness sake) over this cable install. It was quite wonderful. Oh, and BTW the live CDs generally give less trouble with networking and hardware issues, there is a reason but it escapes my ancient mind at the moment.

And a non-surprise, I am more locked down with stinkin windows 98SE (yeah, the security analyst at work couldn't believe, and she a fedora user) than I am in linux. I passed flying colors at shieldsup with zonealarm but flunked with linux and an open port 1024 (she doesn't think it a problem though) because I am hopeless with iptables, chains, manacles, whatever.

Oh, and my last resort would have been usb modem or using my usb ethernet adapter (which I am going to be using on the second computer...wish me luck folks ) I do think windows will also balk at that thing though, at least my 98 is gonna want the driver. I even need drivers for 98 with a usb thumbdrive.

Champagne: you are quite right about the wondefulness of the kanotix distro But I am disappointed in how the english forum is going now. I really wish I spoke german because I think that is probably still quite fine.

jd: right on about network card detection in linux in general !

eco: thanks and you know me too well. But I am spending more time in windows now than I have in months and my games are singing a siren call (no more latency problems )

and now for a question probably as unrelated as you can possibly get to this thread. But this is a lounge and I can get away with it here--- would appreciate input/experience. At the same I have installed said cable...I have developed an odd monitor "wave or twitch" It is intermittent, quite strong but then it is gone. Just a big ripple out from lower left corner. I find it hard to believe it is coincidence but I can't understand how the cable could have caused it. I have relocated the pc and monitor several days prior to this cable install and spent plenty of time on it. But I did not develop the problem until last night when I got the cable. (the cable modem is well away from monitor. Interference really doesn't seem likely. So the only other new thing is the turning on of the onboard ethernet adapter. It is like degaussing but SILENT- what could be the interference that wasn't there before cable? I am not spending quite enough time in windows to note if it is present there...this is something that occurs maybe once an hour? Ideas? It's a cheap monitor, maybe on the way out you never know but such a coincidence

[nishtya]

mz...sorry I didn't mean to miss you What makes me uncomfortable about the fix to "fix" the netcardconfig is what hoops it was to jump through. I really didn't ever think to EDIT a SHELL SCRIPT. I was looking for a config file. OK, I am a linux newbie stop laughing. But I googled for hours (and in debian forums, to boot) and came up with zilch except for that one post here that had a solution, for me anyway. I would think something as important as getting the network card configuration to load every time would be better documented. It makes me uneasy. Hard to explain, I think it is probably the wrong way to do it, much like my "fix" for the user can't get modem issue.

[nishtya]

http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtop...?p=59855#59855

it just never ends. The simplest of things. Cuddles where are you? Tell me this is better and I shouldn't go back over to the evil side........... waaaaaaaaaa

[gowator]

I think part of the answers are in your own posts...
You have been using windows for years so of course you are used to the way windows does things...

editing a script is not the best way but occaisional bugs do creep in, the big difference is that you can actually fix this... if it didnt work in wondows it doesnt work whereas in linux it can usually be made to work...

New releases are tempting but you might want to ask WHY do you want to use BH7? Seriously apart from a couple of extra drivers...??

Its really tempting and its free but if your as old as me then you might wanna just put a stable working box up...
I have 2 main boxes...

On one I try and keep a stable distro...in fact its mainly testing but I just leave it and upgrade/install odd individual packges...
On the other I mess with distro's. It is frequently broken and often holds 5-6 distro's...

On your kanotix forum comment, couldnt agree more.

On your twtich, afraid it could be coincidence or moving the montor when you messed about but how about things like radio keyboards?

[nishtya]

I keep two boxes too. At the moment the spare box has a more stable BH5, lindows & 98 - it is going to be used for trying out all those new distros I have been downloading. My main box here I have my BH7 and a very stable (for me) BH4 along with 98. In retrospect the BH7 probably was a mistake - I have held onto my BH4 very tight but finally gave in to the new version . Since I am going to be networking soon and if wall-fishing is unsucessful I will be needing what support they have for wifi anyway. Ain't gonna be pretty. I will try fishing before buying the router

The monitor is a puzzler. I would agree with the move having something to do with it except that it was in this spot for a couple of days before I got the cable and the wave didn't start until the first boot in linux with it. And it was a very short distance move, maybe 25 feet. Coincidence is possible since this is an apartment and I have no idea what my neighbor on the other side of the wall right here is doing. They are a busy bunch over there and anything is possible. Seems to have calmed down a bit to once or twice a night. Hate to think the monitor is going. It's a nice samsung, cheap but very good picture and you know how hard it is to find that even in a more expensive one sometimes. I am trying to remember if I had hooked up this new surge protector BEFORE the move but I can't (getting old stinks, rilly it does) I have tried moving everything away from it except for that. I don't have any stepdown transformers plugged into it, though, they are down on the floor and probably no closer than they were in the old location. That's the next thing I try before just giving up and waiting for the monitor to get worse (I would like an LCD but just can't swing one - I really overextended myself with the cable, but boy it is nice )

[gowator]

Hmmm.
WiFi is one suspect for interference but other things are like video-senders etc.

The support for Wifi doesnt 'need' a new release though.
It probably mans a new kernel but thats another matter and then the individual packages can be used.

My guess is you fell into the very easy habit of upgrading by new release when linux was just for fun and gradually added more dependant stuff to it.

If you learn how to use the boot loaders (lilo/grub) you can always add a new distro without changing anything and just add it to the boot menu...

I keep my 'homes' on a seperate partition but just link this from the one thats created for instance.
Anyway seriously- remember kanotix is a mix with unstable and testing. Personally I find few problems in testing but often unstable gives a complete hash because the deps are not all available so I always edit out the unstable and keep testing in my sources.list.

A good thing to do is clone the / partition completely at regualr intervals and before trying any dodgy stuff.
I usually leave 10GB for / and put everything else on a partition I call /share (160GB) this leaves me a 10GB space to make a clone of the install. (using partimage or just dd) you can make the changes and boot into the 'spare install' before doing anytihng stupid... have access tot he same documents (on /share) and use it for a while before making this your install and cloning this back to the original...

[Matir]

The problem is the FCC rule that says 'the user must not be able to change the power level' which unfortunately means not open sourcing the driver and needing closed source firmware....

its really a unhappy coincidence and obviously not meant to do this but the effect is to hold back wlan detection....and proper config and leave developers almost guessing....

several of the manufactuerers want to release the drivetr specs but can't

In reality, all they need to do is build in a low-level firmware that limits the power to the regulation 100mw. Make this firmware closed source, if they wish. But they could build a higher level interface firmware that is openspec, which would permit opensource drivers for the chips. It's not impossible, the rules don't lock them into this.

And, I will have you note, some users ARE permitted to increase the output power of such devices. FCC Part 97 (Amateur Radio) users have shared-spectrum allocation, and as such, can use up to (I believe) 100 W, not that any chipset would be able to put that out.

Also, I noticed that my wireless card (through ndisdriver) limits itself to 20mw... what crap.